What is Calvinism?

It is a series of theological beliefs first promoted by John Calvin (1509-1564). They were affirmed by the Synod of Dordt (1618-1619) as being the doctrine of salvation which is contained in the Bible. It laid the foundation for Reformed Theology.

Calvinism is often summarized by The Five Points of Calvinism, which are easy to recall by using the acrostic “TULIP:“

T: This usually stands for “Total depravity:” This is often mistaken to mean that humans are all hopelessly, intensely sinful. Actually, it means something quite different: as a result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God — the Fall of Man — sin has extended to all parts of every person’s being: “his thinking, his emotions and his will.”

Sometimes, this has been called “Total inability.” This is the concept that it is impossible for the ordinary “natural” human to understand the Gospel’s message. They are spiritually helpless. First, God must first decide to intervene in the form of the third personality within the Trinity, the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, the person is lost forever.

Rom 5:12 Therefore, as sin came into the world through one man, and death as the result of sin, so death spread to all men, [no one being able to stop it or to escape its power] because all men sinned.

Mar 4:11 And He said to them, To you has been entrusted the mystery of the kingdom of God [that is, the secret counsels of God which are hidden from the ungodly]; but for those outside [of our circle] everything becomes a parable,

U: This stands for “Unconditional Election.” This is the concept of predestination: that God has divided humanity into two groups. One group is “the elected.” It includes all those whom God has chosen to make knowledgeable about himself. The rest will remain ignorant of God, and the Gospel. They are damned and will spend eternity in hell without any hope of mercy or cessation of the extreme tortures (I must point out that currently I have no firm belief system on the subject of hell other than that it is an eternity separated from the Glory of God – which to my mind would indeed be tortuous). God made this selection before the universe was created, and thus before any humans existed. The ground or grounds that God uses to select the lucky few is unknown. What is known is that it is not through any good works on the part of the individual. It is not that he extends knowledge to some in order to find out who will accept salvation and who will not.

There is a degree of tension within the Bible concerning precise division of responsibility between God and humans on this matter. The Bible does not resolve this issue.

Hyper-Calvinists believe that a person has zero responsibility for their own salvation; it is all up to God.

Arminians teach that humans have free will and thus can accept or resist the call of God

Rom 9:15 For He says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and I will have compassion (pity) on whom I will have compassion. [Exod. 33:19.]

Rom 9:21 Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same mass (lump) one vessel for beauty and distinction and honorable use, and another for menial or ignoble and dishonorable use?

L: This stands for “Limited atonement” or “Particular Redemption.” This is the belief that Jesus did not die to save (justify) all humans. He only died for the sake of specific sins of those sinners who are saved. This idea is often misunderstood because scripture tells us that God desires that all men be saved. The truthful description of this doctrine is “unlimited atonement with limited application”:

Mat 26:28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which [ratifies the agreement and] is being poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. [Exod. 24:6-8.]

Eph 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her,

I: This stands for “Irresistible Grace:” This is the belief that every human whom God has elected will inevitably come to a knowledge of God. The elect cannot resist the call.

Joh 6:44 No one is able to come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me attracts and draws him and gives him the desire to come to Me, and [then] I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.

Rom 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

1Pe 5:10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace [Who imparts all blessing and favor], Who has called you to His [own] eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will Himself complete and make you what you ought to be, establish and ground you securely, and strengthen, and settle you.

P: This stands for “Perseverance of the saints:” This is the “Once saved, always saved” belief — that everyone who has been saved (justified) will remain in that state. God will begin and continue a process of sanctification which will continue until they reach heaven. None are lost; it is impossible for them to lose their salvation.

Php 1:6 And I am convinced and sure of this very thing, that He Who began a good work in you will continue until the day of Jesus Christ [right up to the time of His return], developing [that good work] and perfecting and bringing it to full completion in you.

Rom 8:28-39 We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose. (29) For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren. (30) And those whom He thus foreordained, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (acquitted, made righteous, putting them into right standing with Himself). And those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity and condition or state of being]. (31) What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] [Ps. 118:6.] (32) He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things? (33) Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect [when it is] God Who justifies [that is, Who puts us in right relation to Himself? Who shall come forward and accuse or impeach those whom God has chosen? Will God, Who acquits us?] (34) Who is there to condemn [us]? Will Christ Jesus (the Messiah), Who died, or rather Who was raised from the dead, Who is at the right hand of God actually pleading as He intercedes for us? (35) Who shall ever separate us from Christ’s love? Shall suffering and affliction and tribulation? Or calamity and distress? Or persecution or hunger or destitution or peril or sword? (36) Even as it is written, For Thy sake we are put to death all the day long; we are regarded and counted as sheep for the slaughter. [Ps. 44:22.] (37) Yet amid all these things we are more than conquerors and gain a surpassing victory through Him Who loved us. (38) For I am persuaded beyond doubt (am sure) that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things impending and threatening nor things to come, nor powers, (39) Nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Joh 6:39 And this is the will of Him Who sent Me, that I should not lose any of all that He has given Me, but that I should give new life and raise [them all] up at the last day.

Objections to Calvinism:

Universalism: This term has many meanings. Today’s most common meaning is that all individuals will eventually attain Heaven. None will be lost forever in Hell. Whether or not they have been saved during their lifetime is unimportant; the number and degree of sins that they have committed is also of no consequence. This belief system is so outrageously contradictory to so much of scripture it is a wonder anyone believing it can even say they’ve read or understood the Word of God.

Arminiansm: This is comprised of a series of beliefs which were first advocated by a break-away group of Dutch Calvinists. They teach beliefs that differ significantly from each of The Five Points of Calvinism:

• That each person is not spiritually helpless. She/he has free will and can choose to be saved
• God selected the Elect on the basis of his foreknowledge of who would respond and be saved.
• Jesus died so that everyone had a chance to be saved. But first, the person must choose to accept salvation.
• Man has free will and thus can resist the call of God.

Now then; I was raised understanding the belief (false belief) of man having free will and being able to accept or reject the salvation provided by Christ’s sacrificial atonement upon the cross, and it wasn’t until much later in my life after a complete rejection of all I was raised to believe and then through serious consideration of His Word and what it really said, that I understood those beliefs to be completely contrary to scripture its teachings of an omnipotent and soveriegn God.

Basically this belief system teaches us that God is dependent upon us. That He remains at our beck and call to be accepted or rejected as we see fit. It teaches that the best our Sovereign Lord could do was to look into the future and see who would or would not accept Him and then ‘elect’ those He foresaw as accepting Him. This belief system has at its foundation man’s utter arrogance and carnal need to be above his Creator…

Complete and utter hogwash.

One last detraction of Calvinism, or more directly; the doctrine of predestination and election, is that it somehow destroys evangelism. Once again, man placing his ability and input over that of the Sovereign God. Somehow, God is dependent upon us to spread His Word and ‘win souls’. I think however, that I will carry over the refutation of this nonsense to another post…